It’s almost cliché that Bingo and senior health facilities go hand and hand. Here at the Witherell, residents play the game every week, but so do millions of others elsewhere. Bingo is even played online. Pretty interesting considering the game is nearly 500 years old. We wondered, why, after all these centuries, is Bingo so…
By now, it’s a well-known fact that as we age, we lose muscle mass, particularly skeletal muscle mass (e.g. shoulder muscles, hamstring muscles and abdominal muscles) which we rely on to move, maintain posture and metabolism, and for strength. For the most part, losing muscle mass (sarcopenia) begins somewhere around the age of 40. By…
Dementia affects more than 5.8 million people in the United States, according to the CDC. It can be very mild or severe. But experts uniformly caution us not to infantilize or talk down to those with dementia when you wish to communicate. In this week’s Wall Street Journal, Dr. Anne Basting, author of Creative Care:…
If you’ve lived, visited, volunteered, or worked at the Witherell, you know that music is a key part of our culture. We regularly host performances by local choirs and orchestras, and even provide music appreciation classes. Recognizing how music supports the emotional, spiritual, and physical well-being of our seniors, we made a commitment long ago…
In early January, the Nathaniel Witherell began vaccinating our residents and staff against COVID-19. As of today, many at our facility have been fully vaccinated and our clinics will continue providing vaccinations this month. In the words of our medical director, Dr. Frank Walsh, “It’s important for us all to do everything we can to…
The Witherell is known as a bright and bustling place during the holidays, and this year was no exception. Although we missed having family on hand for gift exchanging and special events, we still had lots of festive fun while also knowing we were staying safe and healthy. Once again, our therapeutic recreation department, helmed…
Despite the challenges we’ve all experienced in 2020, the silver lining continues to be the way our community goes above and beyond to support our beloved residents and staff. This support was on full display last weekend, when the acclaimed Greenwich Symphony Orchestra sent its excellent Brass Quintet to perform a special outdoor concert at…
The Witherell’s beautiful 20+ acre campus is one of our most enviable features. With lush gardens and plenty of green space, our residents have always loved spending time outdoors. Now, blue skies and warm breezes are making the Witherell a wonderful place to enjoy the company of friends and family at safe social distances, too….
Safeguarding the health of our residents is number one. But we also know that an essential part of well-being, and an important tool in preventing cognitive decline, is keeping seniors mentally engaged and emotionally connected. So, we’ve gotten very creative lately! Even though group activities are restricted currently, our therapeutic recreation team continues to offer…
